Numism > Reading For the Advanced Ancient Coin Collector

Fire beacons on coins and for long-distance communiction

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rjohara:
Some time ago when reading Stephen Toulmin's magnificent book Night Sky at Rhodes (which is sadly out of print but should be required reading for anyone interested in Asia Minor and the early history of science and philosophy) I took note of his observation that signal beacons on hilltops could spread messages across Ionia within minutes. I took note of this because about the same time I came across a coin from Erythrae, dating to the 3rd C AD, and claiming to illustrate a fire beacon on the reverse. (I assume it is a Roman provincial; I just printed a picture from the web without details.)

Just now I was reading the beginning of Aeschylus' Agamemnon, and was struck again by the story of the near-instant communication of the fall of Troy along a chain of signal beacons all the way to mainland Greece. (A fictional and dramatic account, but the idea is clear.)

Two related questions: (1) Has anyone made a list of fire beacons appearing on coins? (Perhaps they are easy to confuse with altars or other structures?) (2) Are there any other famous literary example of communication-by-beacon, especially in western Asia Minor?

One of our fine art historians (Pat?) must have some wisdom for us.

rjohara:
Here is an example of a different coin, but also from Erythrae, showing a fire beacon on the reverse, from the Fitzwilliam Museum collections.

cscoppa:
There are many theories about the meaning of the "turrets" on the campgate type of coins. There are two, three and four of these structures that sit atop the main building. One of the theories is that they are pots for holding fires for sending signals.  I have read how the various number of signals 2, 3 or 4 could be used to send a code from tower to tower.

It is interesting to me how the middle grouping (in the years of 316 to 330 AD) of this style coin's reverse for Constantine, his sons and Licinius and his son have two "turrets" for most of the 14 minting sites and only few sites for the three (in the East & Rome) and a few sites for the four (in the West & Rome).  Did this mean that there was two different types of  "advanced" signaling plus the standard two tower signals. Food for thought.

slokind:
Sorry, this archaeologist must fail you.  But I'll keep it in mind.  The first thing I thought of is that there are places were there are towers that are not apparently part of walls, and these are often in high places.  That's not much.  Pat L.

rjohara:
Here is Toulmin, commenting on the view from a hill on Samos, looking east toward the Ionian coastline below him:


--- Quote ---For the first time, I realized just how compact this area of the globe was. Our scientific tradition first saw light in a region the size of an English county. Clazomenae, Teos, Colophon, Ephesus, Panionium, Samos, Priene, Miletus: even in those days, the towns of the Ionian confederacy lay within a few hours' journey of one another. Indeed, they were all within signalling-range: though some of the towns (like Priene) lay shielded by the slopes of the mountains, a string of signal-fires on the hilltops above them could have carried messages from one end of Ionia to the other in a few minutes. As for the web of sea-routes by which the towns were all linked, these converged fatefully - as Polycrates had seen - on that mile-wide strait at my feet.
--- End quote ---

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